A Sweet And Savoury Journey Through Home Cooking

Healthy

I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with quinoa as I shared in my post on Lemony Roasted Cauliflower and Chickpeas. I find it tends to suck the flavour out of things, and isn’t really that exciting on it’s own. Ha, ha, am I selling you on this yet? This really is a wonderful supper full of savoury flavours and delightful textures. I have found that red quinoa seems to have a bit more flavour, and I prefer it for this dish and most others. It is vegan as long as you either use dairy free cheese shreds and either omit or use a dairy free version of sour cream.

This recipe was inspired by one from Thug Kitchen 101- but edited for both additional flavour and simplicity. It could also easily be used as a filling for tacos, or as a topping for nachos 🙂

Combine 1 cup quinoa with water or veggie broth. Add 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp coriander, 1 tsp smoked paprika, 1 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp oregano. Bring to boil, and then cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Stir every few minutes until water is absorbed and quinoa is fluffy- about 20 min. Taste and adjust seasoning, adding a bit more of everything to your taste, or leaving it as is. While quinoa is cooking, prepare vegetables.

Add 2 tbsp oil to pan on medium high heat, and add onion, black beans, bell pepper, and jalapeño to pan. Fry until veggies are starting to get tender and getting some colour- about 5-7 min. Add cooked quinoa, lime juice, garlic, and cilantro. Stir for an additional minute or two.

Serve hot over lettuce with toppings of your choice. Also delicious cold for lunch the next day!

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For a long time I had mixed feelings about chili. I don’t care for kidney beans. Sometimes people put mushrooms in their chili, and mushrooms happen to be one of the few things that I REALLY don’t like. I’m a bit picky about my ground beef. But one of the glorious things about making things yourself is you can do it how you like it. I usually make chili with stew beef rather than ground beef, but though I’m not big on New Year’s resolutions, I have been inspired to make more plant protein based meals. This chili is a riff on something between my regular chili, and the chili mac from Thug Kitchen 101. It is vegan as long as you stick to vegan ‘toppers’ to finish.

You will need:

2 tbsp safflower or olive oil

1 onion chopped (I often use red onion, but yellow onions work fine)

1 red bell pepper chopped

1 carrot finely chopped

1 large stalk of celery (or two small)

1 jalapeño finely minced (use half if you are cautious about the heat, it is always easier to add more than to try and adjust it if you’ve made it too hot for your taste)

2-3 cloves garlic pressed or minced

1 tbsp ground cumin

1 tbsp ground coriander

1 tbsp smoked paprika

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp salt

2 cups (500ml) of a plain tomato sauce, or diced tomatoes (I usually use my ones I canned from my garden until I run out!)

*2 tbsp (30 ml)- 1/2 cup tomato paste the amount of tomato paste needed will depend on the tomato sauce you use and whether you used just canned tomatoes or an actual sauce

1 can of beer

2-3 cups (750ml) of vegetable broth (start with 2, add more water if needed for the pasta to cook)

3 cups of small pasta (about 240g) (today I used a tri-colour rotini, but I also love small shells for this)

1 can (540ml 19 fl oz) of black beans, rinsed

2 tbsp maple syrup

1 tbsp lime juice + zest from one lime

any or none of the following to finish – cilantro, cheese, sour cream, avocado, lime wedges, additional jalapeño. This dish is vegan as long as you stick to vegan add ins.

In a large skillet, add 2 tbsp oil and chopped onion, celery, carrot, bell pepper, and jalapeño pepper. Cook for 5-7 minutes until veggies are fragrant and getting tender. Add garlic, coriander, cumin and paprika and cook for another 1-2 minutes.

Add tomato sauce, veggie broth, and beer. Cover and bring to a simmer. Add pasta, cover and cook until pasta is a bit before al dente. The amount of time here will depend on the size of your pasta, but about 7 minutes should probably do it. Add lime juice and zest, maple syrup and tomato paste and cook for another 5 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed.

Before tomato paste is added

after tomato paste

Serve topped with any or none of the the suggested toppings. Do you have any toppings you love for chili that aren’t mentioned here?

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If ‘coleslaw’ makes you think of mayo- banish it from your mind! This is not your mayo based coleslaw for sure. Red cabbage is beautiful, inexpensive and an excellent source of vitamins C, K, and A. You could do all red cabbage for this slaw, or all green if that’s all you can find, but I like a combination of the two for the colours. In the middle of winter it can be difficult to find good produce that is reasonably priced. This colourful meal checks a number of boxes- easy, fast, healthy and economical!

RANDOM SCIENCE FACTS AND FUN HOME LAB FOR KIDS– skip this and scroll down if you want to straight to the foods!

You can also make an AWESOME natural indicator with red cabbage. An indicator is a substance that changes colour depending on pH. Red cabbage contains a pigment molecule that is an anthocyanin- this is what is responsible for the colour changes. Want a fun little science lab you can do at home? I have done the following MANY times with my science students. I usually have them test a variety of ‘mystery liquids’ with both pH strips and a few drops of the red cabbage indicator. They are always surprised with the variety and brightness of the colours produced.

To make the indicator, boil some chopped red cabbage(about a cup or cup and a half) with a half a cup of water for about 5 minutes- it doesn’t matter too much proportions, but you want to end up with a dark purple liquid – that being said, the colour of the liquid will very much depend on the pH of your tap water and how close to neutral your water is. Strain and cool (keep tightly sealed in the fridge) Once cooled, you can test a variety of household substances.

Start with something you know is acidic- lemon juice or vinegar and something you know is basic- bleach for example, so you have a baseline and know what colours to expect from acids and bases. In science class we use spot plates and pipettes, but you can just place a few drops of your testing liquid onto a plate. You want just a few drops of the substance you are testing, and then place a few drops of your indicator into it and record your observations.

If you drip this liquid into a substance that is basic, it will turn green, and if you drip it into an acid it turns bright pink. (Neutral solutions will stay purple). Have fun checking a variety of household liquids!

Time: 40 minutes for the sausages, about 15 minutes for the slaw or less if you are using a food processor.

Oven: 400F

Serves: 2-3

You will need:

350 g (about 4 cups) red cabbage thinly sliced

200 g (about 3 cups) green cabbage thinly sliced

140 g (1 large) carrot grated

3 salt and pepper sausages (can be found at Maltese if you are in Thunder Bay) or 3 mildly flavoured sausages of your choice

Whisk together all dressing ingredients. This makes about 1 cup of dressing.

Thinly slice cabbages and grate carrot. I used a food processor today, but have often just sliced by hand. Dress slaw in half of the dressing and refrigerate and reserve the other half of the dressing. (This is fine made ahead, but ensure you don’t add the toasted sesame seeds until serving)

Add 1 additional clove of garlic to the reserved dressing. Place sausages in a small casserole dish with the half cup of reserved dressing. Bake for 40 minutes, flipping them over periodically and basting in the dressing.

In a small frying pan, add the sesame seeds and toast over medium heat, shaking them up until golden- about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Add a generous amount slaw to each plate. When sausage is thoroughly cooked, slice on the bias and place on top of slaw. Sprinkle with a teaspoon or two of toasted sesame seeds.

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Life has been crazy. I hope you can forgive my slacking in the blogosphere. I’ve made a lot of great things, but those extra steps of taking pictures and writing things out has just been beyond what I’ve been able to do the last month or so!

It has also been freezing. The last two weeks it’s been colder in Thunder Bay than it has in the Arctic- like the actual north pole! We just got back from a few days of skiing where we had a high of about -30C everyday. Brrrrr… I have to say, that perhaps the one good thing about this wintery weather is soup.

Originally, I was feeling more of a cheddar beer soup… but we just spent 3 days eating out and I was really craving more veg. Plus, a cheddar soup is so much (delicious) cheese, but it’s January so everyone is trying to be good! Thus, I thought I would do a soup that was somewhere closer to being a little more virtuous and yet had the spirit of something more decadent.

This is quick to put together, is loaded with savory flavours, and vegan if you either omit the cheese or use a vegan shredded cheese to finish.

* I didn’t have any, but it would be delightful with a hit of chives to finish!

Add 2 tbsp oil to a heavy bottomed pot on medium heat. Add onion, celery and carrot to pot. Cook for about 10 minutes, until you start getting some nice browned bits on the bottom. Add garlic and cook for about 1-2 minutes more until garlic is fragrant.

Deglaze pot with beer, scraping up those delicious browned bits. Add diced potatoes, and veggie broth. Bring to a boil and boil for 10 minutes until potatoes are tender. Add the dijon, hot sauce, lemon zest, lemon juice, and several grinds of fresh pepper. Add the broccoli and boil for about another 6 minutes.

Use an immersion blender to blend soup to desired consistency, I like mine where there are still a few chunky bits left. Taste and adjust seasoning- adding more salt (depending on the saltiness of your broth, this may or may not be needed) more pepper or more hot sauce if you want to dial up the heat a bit.

This would be delightful topped with some fresh chives, but I forgot to buy them so had to go without. Top with cheese (vegan if desired) and enjoy with garlic toasts!

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Cilantro seems to be one of those things that people like or REALLY dislike. The people who like it always seem to like it a lot. To me, cilantro tastes fresh and almost a bit citrusy. The people who hate it usually describe it as tasting like soap. That all being said, this black bean dip is for sure for the cilantro lovers! The ingredient list is short, and it’s a nice complement to salsa.

Time: 5 minutes

You will need:

1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed

a generous handful of cilantro including stems-see photo below for an idea of how much- you could of course use less if that is your preference

1-2 cloves of garlic

juice of two limes

Drain and rinse the black beans. Give the cilantro a rinse, but don’t worry about drying it. Add beans, cilantro, 1-2 cloves of garlic, and the juice of two limes to a food processor and pulse until combined. Serve with bread or tortilla chips, or as a yummy spread on a wrap (think the way you might use hummus). This is fine made the day before, but doesn’t keep well for more than a few days because of the mass of cilantro. I used canned beans, which I usually find salty enough, but if you are using dried beans that you’ve rehydrated, you may wish to add salt.

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If you live in Thunder Bay and haven’t tried Big Lake Pasta you should track some down at your earliest convenience. This pasta dish could probably be made with any pasta, but the Saffron Campanelle really did give it an extra something special.

Speaking of special, you may have noticed a real lack of fish and seafood posts from me on this blog. That’s because when I make them, it’s only as something special for my husband or company that I really love as I have a fairly severe allergy to them. Full disclosure, I was told that the shrimp were really good, but I didn’t (and can’t) actually taste them myself. I have the feeling that three of these large prawns would have been a fine serving, but since it’s a special treat, hubby got all six. Obviously this isn’t vegetarian if you use shrimp, but I ate it without and didn’t feel like I was missing anything.

Serves: 4 (though you would need more shrimp for 4 people, there is enough pasta and sauce for 4)

Time: about 1 hour including simmering time for sauce

You will need:

1 medium/large onion diced

4 cloves garlic minced or pressed

2 tbsp olive or canola oil

1 dried chili pepper or about 1/2-1tsp of chili flakes

2 cups of white wine (preferably dry, preferably Chardonnay)

1 can of San Marzano tomatoes

1 tbsp paprika

salt and pepper to taste

a few tbsp fresh flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped for garnish

wedges of fresh lemon

350g fresh pasta, preferably Big Lake Saffron Campanelle

For the shrimps – I used tiger prawns and serving size will depend on the size of your shrimp!

I used this amount of butter/spice mixture for 6 large tiger prawns (probably 2 servings)

2 tbsp melted butter

1 large clove of garlic minced or pressed

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp minced flat leaf parsley

In a large pot over medium heat, add about 2 tbsp olive or canola oil. Add the onion to this and stir around for about 10 minutes until softened and translucent. Add the garlic and chili pepper and stir for about 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Add 2 cups of white wine, slowly at first to scrape up any browned bits from the pan. Then add the can of tomatoes and paprika. Allow to simmer for about 45min to 1hr. Taste after simmering for a while, and add salt and pepper to taste.

While sauce is simmering, prep the butter mixture for the shrimp. Rinse and clean shrimp if necessary and slide onto bamboo skewers. Baste with butter sauce before putting on BBQ, and if you have enough, one more time when you flip them over.

The shrimp will take less than 10 minutes on the bbq, so when you are ready to put your pasta in the boiling water that would be the time to put them on.

Serve with a sprinkle of fresh chopped herbs (parsley or basil) and squeeze a wedge of lemon over just before serving.

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This salad comes together quickly and makes a delicious side. If you’re looking to make it a little more hearty, add some crumbled feta- if you do you should omit the salt until after you’ve tasted it with the cheese as feta is quite salty.

I like the cucumbers in thin half moons

I had already chopped the cucumbers like this for something else that night- but prefer them in the half moons

Makes: about 4 side servings

Time: less than 10 minutes

You will need:

1 long English cucumber

2 cups cherry tomatoes

1 large clove of fresh garlic

juice of 1 fresh lemon

1 tbsp fresh chopped dill (add more if desired)

several grinds of fresh black pepper

salt to taste (about 1/4 tsp)

Halve the cucumber and thinly slice into half moons and put in a medium sized bowl. Quarter cherry tomatoes and add to cucumbers. Mince or press garlic and add to the cucumber and tomato. Chop dill and add to the vegetables. Add the juice of one fresh lemon and several grinds of fresh pepper and salt. Stir together. This salad can be eaten immediately, but is best if left to sit at least half an hour before serving in order to let the flavours marry.